Jaedin Hernandez, 9, who is autistic, runs around the playground during a visit to Barrett Park on Thursday. His mother, Bobbie-Jo Hernandez, said the Leominster Autism Project is making a difference in changing people s attitudes toward those who fall within the autism spectrum. SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE/JOHN LOVE

LEOMINSTER -- On Feb. 2, Leominster Autism Project founder Stephanie Madrigal stood with members of her organization in front of a crowd of local residents that had gathered inside City Hall and promised a brighter future for local residents with autism.

Nearly six months later, as she stood on a playground outside Frances Drake Elementary School watching her son climb the jungle gym, she contemplated how far her project has come.

"I think this whole thing is a bigger monster than we could have ever imagined," Madrigal admitted, but without a hint of worry or regret.

It has been a very busy six months for Madrigal and the other local parents and volunteers who make up the Leominster Autism Project.

Stacy Maillet, left, and Stephanie Madrigal talk about their involvement with the Leominster Autism Project during a visit Thursday to the playground at Barrett Park. Both have children with autism. Madrigal said the project has come a long way since she founded it nearly six months ago.

In February, Madrigal told the crowd gathered at City Hall that the project's goal would be to make the entire city as free and accessible to people with autism as it is for anyone else. Since then, members of the project have been reaching that goal one business at a time.

Nearly 20 local establishments have gotten involved with the Leominster Autism Project by having their staffs go through basic autism-sensitivity training that teaches them methods of better meeting the needs of customers with autism and their families.

"As a parent, it's great knowing that there are these places that we will be able to go to without having to literally gather reconnaissance on beforehand," said Stacy Maillet, founder of the Nicholas James Foundation.

Advertisement

Maillet's foundation, which donates iPads to autistic children to help their communicative abilities, has since partnered with Madrigal to help fund the project.

Like many children who fall within the autism spectrum, Maillet's son's heightened sensory sensitivity can make going to restaurants, grocery stores or doctor's or dentist's offices especially challenging.

"Patients will have specific sensory sensitivities that you have to recognize and work accordingly with," said Dr. Mike Richler, a pediatric dentist with Leominster Family Dentists. "What we try to do is make each experience go according to each child's needs."

Sinking their teeth in

Leominster Family Dentists was one of the first local businesses to get involved with the Autism Project earlier this year. Its autistic patients have access to sunglasses for light sensitivity and noise-canceling headphones, and are able to watch television or movies during their visits.

However, Richler noted, none of those are recent accommodations.

During Richler's two-year pediatric residency, he received extensive training working with special-needs patients.

But since becoming a participating business with the project, Leominster Family Dentists office manager Lindsey Gambaccini said the practice has seen an uptick in new patients, especially with families of autistic children.

"We've definitely seen a lot of new patients come because of this, and we've had a pretty good response online," she said.

However, both Gambaccini and Richler were quick to point out that expanding business was never what motivated their practice to get involved with the project.

"I don't even see the business opportunities here. I just want to help out," Richler said.

Similar successes have been seen at the Mall at Whitney Field, where employees of 12 businesses have all taken part in autism training provided by project volunteers.

Each participating store will now provide a list of autism-related accommodations to parents visiting the mall.

"We'll have that available so that families of children who are on the spectrum will know which stores might be able to turn down their music or provide a quiet area for kids to try on clothing or be entertained when their parent does," said Liz Kelly, the mall's general manager.

Mall on board

Other resources some of the stores would be willing to offer include private areas for children under duress and accelerated cashier lines.

The mall is also implementing an incentive program for children with autism that their parents can use to reward their kids when they can complete a shopping trip without incident.

Kelly said the mall has already hosted several sensory-friendly activities, including a recent scavenger hunt and, earlier, more private chances to take photos with the Easter Bunny.

"We've been having a pretty positive response so far," Kelly said. "One mom told us that she had never been able to get a photo taken with the Easter Bunny before, and her son was 8 years old."

Apart from each store, the mall's security, house-keeping, customer service and management-office employees went through the project's autism training as well.

The Leominster Autism Project's training session was developed with the help of Dr. Nancy Murray, chairwoman of Fitchburg State University's graduate program in special education. The training serves as a basic education of autism and coping strategies.

And it's not just for the local businesses either.

According to Madrigal, the one-hour training sessions are commonly frequented by local parents whose children have recently been diagnosed.

"We've even had people who, after going through our training, were able get their loved ones diagnosed because of what they had learned," she said.

One of the more unexpected results Madrigal has encountered since starting the project has been the response from adults with autism.

"We've found that we've been talking with adults that are also on the spectrum who want to be out dating or doing other things in the community," she said. "They want to get together with other peers who they can identify with, and there aren't a whole lot of opportunities for that right now."

If the project can expand its volunteer staff, Madrigal said she hopes to devote a whole team to work with adults with autism.

Another Battlefield

Residents in the nearby communities of Westminster and Gardner have expressed interest in carrying out programs similar to what has taken place in Leominster, but surprisingly, one of the strongest partnerships has been formed with the Missouri town of Battlefield.

"We were starting our project around the same time and when we were researching what else was already out there, we found Stephanie's project," said Dr. Linda Barboa, one of the organizer's of Battlefield's autism project.

The city of Battlefield proclaimed itself autism-friendly in April and, like Leominster, has been hosting training and building resources for people with autism ever since. Most recently, Barboa and her volunteers have been working to have autism-friendly equipment installed at a local playground.

Describing her correspondence with the volunteers in Leominster, Barboa said, "It's been a wonderful collaboration. Both groups have been so happy to share with each other and promote what's been going on in each community."

The reception has also been positive among local families.

For Bobbie-Jo Hernandez, whose two children both fall on the spectrum, changes in the city's approach to autism have been noticeable over the last few years.

"It was so much harder when my son, Jaedin was young," she said. "We would just stay home all the time. I can remember a time when we were waiting at the doctor's office, and he was having a meltdown. A lady came out and, instead of maybe doing something helpful, just said that he was too old to be doing that."

Since then, Hernandez said she has found that local residents have become much more knowledgeable and sensitive to children with autism and their families.

Her mother, Debra Phillips, agrees.

"Everyone comes together here," she said. "This new project is going to bring happiness to all of us as a community, and Leominster is one of the best places to do this."

Welcome to your discussion forum: Sign in with a Disqus account or your social networking account for your comment to be posted immediately, provided it meets the guidelines. (READ HOW.)
Comments made here are the sole responsibility of the person posting them; these comments do not reflect the opinion of The Sentinel and Enterprise. So keep it civil.